Mondo Bungle

You could make a solid case for this being a redundant thread since I already had the reading log but then again it's not 2018 anymore, and in that thread I was reading books I actively sought out at real libraries and such. But due to the immense late fees built up on my account I can no longer check out items and most likely never will be able to in this county again, but in this living situation a man's gotta read. I'm kinda bummed out that I was reading so tough before coming down here then just like, stopped. But anyway, this thread will focus on whatever random junk I pick up at the Little Free Library.



Apparently there's a lot more of these than I thought and I couldn't find any picture of the one I will actually be exploiting but that's the gist of it. Naturally, especially when you have a literary taste that comes more out of left field, you may imagine the books that do get left in here are gonna be by lame nobodies or extra lame somebodies, but I have been surprised by some novels already, most notably The Paying guests, a slow moving portrait of forbidden love I probably would not have checked out without the intriguing praise on the back for a totally different book. I was already immersed before realizing that though.

Anyway, my first acquisition was already a fairly entertaining jaunt of comic depravity.



The Big Bamboo by Tim Dorsey, 2007

This sort of comic crime thriller I feel like comes around a lot but this wasn't bad. I actually liked it a fair bit. It has a very Thompsonian nature but gone Hollywood over Vegas, and it's generous with the hilarity. Moves quick but manages to spark a bit of intrigue here and there and goes into mystery territory with all these separate plot lines that don't seem related but you know, they are. That's how books be.

Interesting to note the main protagonist here (and it's not his only hurrah), is a manic serial killer with a penchant for gratuitous film references. So the bad guys are the good guys.

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Blarobbarg

I like the concept of this thread and look forward to reading. I love the Little after Libraries around me and enjoy donating to them and taking from them, I’ve gotten some great stuff.

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Key

I have one of these down the street from my house. I love the idea so much. Great thread Mondo. That's not surprising tho.

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CWH

MariaExpressesHerself

I have one hanging outside my house! (not my idea sadly, housemate put it there) People put lots of junk in there, but now and then a good book comes through

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Mondo Bungle

The Story of Land and Sea by Katy Simpson Smith, 2014

Somewhat moving observation of heartbreak and suppressed hope in revolutionary wartime. It's not the most exciting book, but what it lacks in action or mind meltation it makes up for with an arresting and gorgeous prose.

Follows two generations of love, loss, and yearning, and deals with a lot of moral themes. Slavery, what freedom and acceptance really mean, and just general wholesome stuff.

Honestly it's kinda boring, not because it's not my go to style by any means (in fact another historical drama, The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell, surprised me with how much I enjoyed it), it's just a drag. Extra points for its stunning composition and lush wordplay.

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Mondo Bungle

The Gates of Evangeline by Hester Young, 2015

This was cool.

It's a swampy mystery situated on the bayou and centered around the freshly uprooted secrets and crimes of a prominent Louisiana family. A journalist is dispatched to their manor after the long since abandoned subject of a missing son is brought back to light.

Here and there it slips into slight chill territory but the magic lies within the meticulously woven dilemma at hand. Close to the end there's plot twists coming at you left and right and red herrings like a mother****er.

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Mondo Bungle

Mutation by Robin Cook, 1997

I'd picked up three Robin Cook books from the LFL, as the description of "medical thriller" intrigued me and I figured you could almost equate it to "body horror".

The story's okay enough I suppose, about a father that genetically engineered a sort of super child that's running havoc. In my opinion, the novel is hindered by its prose. It's not super advanced or ambitious, except for the parts explaining medical and scientific this and that. It's more for casual readers I'd imagine.

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Mondo Bungle

The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchet, 1985

The LFL had presented a much more choice trio of books the other day, this Pyramids, and Wyrd Sisters.

One of the most imaginative and fantastical books I've read. Kinda reminds me of Galactic Pot Healer in terms of sheer zany and outlandish whatsit. Unique and distinct prose and description that appeals to me on a fairly high level.

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Mondo Bungle

Crash & Burn by Lisa Gardner, 2015

you know the title and cover scream "edgiest book in the supermarket" but it went pretty hard. In a casual way. Mystery and crime and thrills. I got two other books from the other since apparently the LFL is the place to go for trios. I've started another one which is already proving to be more on the horrific side with even some violence :0 but this one is fun and I got to a point where it was greatly compelling and had to finish the whole last like 150 pages cuz I was blazed af.

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Blarobbarg

"Edgiest book in the supermarket" is my aesthetic every single day

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